History

November 1999

Institute of Medicine releases report, To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System, claims that as many as 98,000 people are dying in hospitals due to medical errors each year. Over the next decade, Founder Joe Kiani becomes passionate about how to significantly reduce this number.

November 2010

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) publishes a report revealing the number of Medicare beneficiaries who experiences preventable deaths reaches 180,000.

June 2012

Joe Kiani decides that he has to do something to help with the patient safety problem. He decides to create and hold the Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit in hopes to unify the healthcare ecosystem and come up with an action and commitment oriented approach to eliminate preventable deaths.

Joe Kiani and President Bill Clinton travel to Africa and discuss the problem in June 2012 during their travel. President Clinton commits to help Joe in the mission to achieve ZERO preventable deaths.

A series of brainstorms with luminaries like Dr. Peter Pronovost, helps determine which patient safety challenges to address first.

The Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition in Healthcare becomes the Founding Sponsor of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation.

January 2013

Inaugural Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit is sold out and draws in over 300 attendees. Nine Healthcare Technology Companies sign the Open Data Pledge, at the Summit. Several hospitals make a commitment to zero.

April 2013

September 2013

Chairman Tom Harkin holds the first Senate Hearing on patient safety at the behest of Patient Safety Movement Foundation.

The Patient Safety Movement’s goal of zero preventable deaths is announced at the Clinton Global Initiative by Founder and Chairman, Joe Kiani.

January 2014

One plus 601 lives saved by committed hospitals.

Hospitals in Canada and Lithuania make committments, becoming as first international organizations to join.

January 2015

Foundation announces one plus 6,411 lives saved through commitments made by healthcare organizations and hospitals across the world.

October 2015

Former President Jimmy Carter and wife Rosalynn Carter demonstrate their support for the Foundation’s mission of ZERO preventable hospital deaths. The top three institutions that saved the most lives went on a once in a lifetime fishing trip with President Carter and his wife.

January 2016

Formerly known as the Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit is renamed the World Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit due to global traction by committed organizations.

Foundation announces one plus 24,642 lives saved.

August 2016

After witnessing the potential for numerous alignments across associations, professional societies and non-profits the Foundation forms an opportunity to affiliate, calling these groups Committed Partners.

November 2016

Medtronic signs the Open Data Pledge and also becomes a Benefactor, granting the Foundation $1M per year, through 2020. At this point, over 70 companies have signed PSMF data share pledge and over 50 have signed the CMS data share pledge that PSMF helped CMS create.

December 2020

When the 1999 report To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System was released by the Institute of Medicine, it was the first time the impact and consequences of medical errors were quantified. The report generated a sort of enlightenment that led many like-minded people to form organizations to combat medical errors and hospitals to begin implementing processes to reduce harm.

Joe Kiani, Founder, and Chairman of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation, floored by the alarming statistic that 98,000 Americans were dying from preventable causes in hospitals, began to ask questions and track what was being done in the United States to reduce these unnecessary deaths.

In November 2010, over a decade later, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) published a report which revealed that the number of Medicare beneficiaries who had experienced an event that contributed to their death had reached 180,000. Kiani realized the problem was not getting better, rather it was growing rapidly. Something needed to be done.

Joe continued to hear about countless families, like Rory Staunton and Leah Coufal’s families, who lost their lives under preventable circumstances. These stories helped fuel the mission of ZERO preventable deaths, a bold but necessary goal that the Foundation believes in wholeheartedly because ONE preventable patient death is one too many.

In 2012, tired of general inaction and apathy, Kiani had identified an immediate need to bring all stakeholders across the continuum of care together to take action, thus forming the Patient Safety Movement Foundation.

The Patient Safety Movement Foundation convened the first annual Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit in 2013. The Summit brought together the world’s leading clinicians, hospital CEOs, patient advocates and government leaders to identify primary patient safety challenges and provide tested solutions called Actionable Patient Safety Solutions (APSS). Hospital attendees made formal commitments to implement processes to reduce preventable deaths in their hospitals, and healthcare technology companies signed the Open Data Pledge to share data for the sake of patient safety.

In January 2019, the Patient Safety Movement Foundation held its 7th Annual World Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit and announced over 90,146 lives saved because of commitments made by over 4,710 partnered hospitals across 50 countries. This announcement showcased how far we’ve come, and how much further we must go to reach ZERO preventable deaths.

Our Impact

4710

Hospitals committed to ZERO Preventable Deaths

90146

Lives saved annually by committed hospitals*

*Numbers are self-reported

89

Healthcare technology companies that have signed the Open Data Pledge

Leadership

Diverse in professional background but united by a shared mission, our Board of Directors is comprised of leaders in health technology, public policy, healthcare delivery, information technology, safety innovation, and patient advocacy.

Joe Kiani

Leadership

Joe Kiani

Founder, Patient Safety Movement Foundation; Chairman & CEO of Masimo

Joe Kiani is responsible for creating the Patient Safety Movement Foundation & Coalition and the Patient Safety Science & Technology Summit. Mr. Kiani founded the Patient Safety Movement Foundation (PSMF) in 2013 with a mission to reduce the more than 200,000 preventable patient deaths that occur in U.S. hospitals every year. Under Mr. Kiani’s leadership, the Patient Safety Movement held the first Patient Safety Science & Technology Summit in January 2013 with President Clinton as the keynote speaker. Mr. Kiani has convened hundreds of leading clinicians, hospital CEOs, and medical technology CEOs from around the globe and at this Summit, launched an aggressive goal – ZERO patient deaths by 2020.

The Foundation is breaking down the silos between hospitals, medical technology companies, doctors, engineers and families of patients who have died needlessly. The mission of the PSMF is to: 1) Unify the healthcare ecosystem 2) Identify the challenges that are killing patients to create actionable solutions 3) Ask hospitals to implement Actionable Patient Safety Solutions 4) Promote transparency 5) Ask med tech companies to share the data their devices generate to create a Patient Data Super Highway and help identify at-risk patients 6) Correct misaligned incentives, and 7) Promote love and patient dignity.

As the founder, Chairman, and CEO of Masimo Corporation, a global medical technology innovator, Mr. Kiani has been a beacon for patient safety and innovation in healthcare for more than 20 years. Convinced that the use of adaptive signal processing could solve the problems of motion artifact and signal noise that plagued pulse oximetry–widely recognized as the 5th vital sign–he founded Masimo in 1989 to improve the accuracy of noninvasive patient monitoring.

Mr. Kiani’s dream of transforming patient care thrives today as he works with legislators in Washington, D.C., to affect public policy that supports innovation and promotes good healthcare decisions. In 2010, he created the Masimo Foundation for Ethics, Innovation and Competition in Healthcare to encourage and promote activities, programs, and research opportunities that improve patient safety and deliver advanced healthcare worldwide—fostering access to innovative medical solutions for those who may not otherwise benefit from their lifesaving capabilities. In 2011 he founded the Masimo Political Action Committee to spotlight the important issues that will shape healthcare policy.

Mr. Kiani has won many awards, including the Ernst & Young National Entrepreneur of The Year 2012 Life Sciences Award Winner.

Mr. Kiani believes in turning yesterday’s impossibilities into tomorrow’s possibilities and challenging the status quo. This is exactly what he and his company, Masimo, have done and are continuing to do, and his passion is to share this insight, knowledge, and the indomitable spirit of a true innovator to improve healthcare for Americans and patients around the world.

Leadership

Steven J. Barker, PhD, MD

Dr. Barker received his B.S. in Physics from Harvey Mudd College in 1967, his PhD in Aeronautical Engineering from the California Institute of Technology in 1972, and his MD from the University of Miami in 1981. He has reached the rank of tenured professor in both engineering (UCLA) and anesthesiology (UC Irvine, University of Arizona). He chaired the Department of Anesthesiology at UC Irvine from 1990 to 1995, and then at the University of Arizona from 1995 to 2013. He has published over 200 scholarly works, including 15 textbook chapters. Dr. Barker has served as president of the national organization of anesthesiology department chairs (AAPD) and of the Society for Technology in Anesthesia (STA), senior oral examiner for the American Board of Anesthesiology, and Section Editor for Technology for the journal Anesthesia and Analgesia.

During his 18-year tenure as anesthesiology chair at the University of Arizona, Dr. Barker was active in a number of governance roles outside of his department. He served as the hospital Director of Perioperative Services from 1996 through 2000. He was Chair of the Council of Clinical Department Heads from 2000 through 2003, and then chair of the clinical department heads working group. He served seven years as the American Society of Anesthesiologists Director for Academic Anesthesiology, representing all university anesthesiology departments at the ASA. Dr. Barker has been a productive academician, and has also participated actively in governance and administration at local, state, and national levels. He is now Professor Emeritus of Anesthesiology at the University of Arizona, and Chief Science Officer for Masimo Corporation.

In November 2015, Dr. Barker received the Lifetime Achievement Award from IAMPOV (Innovations and Applications of Monitoring Perfusion, Oxygenation, and Ventilation), “for championing the development of vitally important monitoring technologies and associated testing.” In January 2016, he received the J.S. Gravenstein Award from the Society for Technology in Anesthesia, “for his visionary understanding of the role of technology in anesthesia care and lifetime commitment to patient safety.” In April 2016, he received the “Distinguished Alumni Award” from Harvey Mudd College.

Robin Betts, MBA-HM, RN, CPHQ

Leadership

Robin Betts, MBA-HM, RN, CPHQ

Robin Betts is a leader in clinical innovation and the implementation of safety improvement initiatives and has dedicated her professional life to patient safety, quality, and high reliability systems to make lives better. She has had a distinguished 35-year health care career, practicing as a nurse for 17 years.

Prior to joining Kaiser Permanente, Robin served as Assistant Vice President of Quality and Patient Safety for Intermountain Healthcare – a non-profit health system of 22 hospitals, 185 outpatient clinics, a medical group, and an affiliated health insurance company – in Utah and Idaho. There, she set the vision for patient safety and quality in pursuit of clinical and quality excellence. In 2013, the Patient Safety Movement Foundation awarded Robin with its Humanitarian Award that recognizes leaders from around the world who have made significant progress in saving lives from preventable medical harm.

Robin also has a strong background in health care information technology. She spent almost two decades in clinical informatics and patient safety leadership positions – most notably at Universal Health Services, as the Corporate Director of Information Technology, and at Valley Health System as an Associate Administrator leading implementation of evidence-based clinical care programs.

Robin is a board member of the international Patient Safety Movement Foundation, and an advisory board member of the Weber State University Masters in Healthcare Administration program. She is also an adjunct professor at Weber State University in Utah, where she teaches quality and risk management in health care in its MHA program.

Robin holds is a registered nurse with a BS in Information Technology and an MBA in Health Care Management from Brenau University in Gainesville, Georgia.

Alicia Cole

Leadership

Alicia Cole

Patient Safety Consultant

Alicia Cole had been a successful working actress whose only experience with healthcare was playing doctors on TV. All that changed, however, when she learned in 2006 that she needed a “routine” procedure to remove two small uterine fibroids. Originally, she was scheduled to be home in two days, but that never took place. She left the operating room with a fever, nausea, and pain, and her condition declined from there.

Five days later, during the evening dressing check, Alicia’s mother noticed a small black dot near the incision. In just over an hour, the dot morphed into a quarter-sized pustule. Right then and there, the doctor and Alicia’s mother performed a bedside surgical procedure, cutting open her abdomen and draining the toxic fluid. A terrified Alicia would eventually be diagnosed with multiple hospital-acquired infections including necrotizing fasciitis.

Alicia’s near-fatal case of flesh-eating disease turned her entire midsection into something out of a horror movie and her two-day hospital stay turned into: one month in ICU, two months in the hospital, six additional surgeries, near amputation of her leg, a year and two months of twice-a-day home health care for dressing changes, five months of daily hyperbaric oxygen chamber treatments and three years of treatment at a wound care center for an open, draining abdomen. Six years later, she is still in physical therapy and undergoing pelvic floor rehabilitation.

Alicia’s hospital was later cited for violation of five state laws and ten federal laws for patient safety, infection control, and unsanitary conditions in their operating rooms. An ICU nurse later shared that Alicia was his third patient with NF disease and the only one to survive.

With a talk-to-type program from her bed, Alicia began to share her experience via emails, blogs and social media to educate others. In 2008, she and her parents founded the Alliance for Safety Awareness for Patients (ASAP) as an education and awareness organization. Alicia became co-sponsor of California Senate Bill 158, a measure that helps ensure that hospitals maintain a sanitary environment and mandates public reporting of hospital-acquired infection rates, it also established training programs for hospital infection control professionals. The bill was signed into law in September 2008.

Alicia was also appointed to the state HAI Advisory Committee and has worked tirelessly on the Education and Public Reporting Subcommittee. This year, she also became a member of the State of Wyoming HAI Advisory Group and Chair of the Engagement Committee. She has worked with the Consumers Union Safe Patient Project, lobbied on Capitol Hill, presented at the CMS QualityNet Conference, and was among the inaugural class of patient advocates invited to contribute at the IHI National Quality Forum. All this between making her weekly doctor appointments and physical therapy!

Alicia is also currently a graduate certificate candidate in the Healthcare Management & Leadership Program at UCLA and consulted on the development of the school’s new Patient Advocate Program.

Mike Durkin, OBE, MBBS, FRCA, FRCP, DSc

Leadership

Mike Durkin, OBE, MBBS, FRCA, FRCP, DSc

Senior Advisor on Patient Safety Policy and Leadership, Institute of Global Health Innovation, Imperial College London

Dr Mike Durkin, MBBS, FRCA, DSc (Hon) was the NHS National Director of Patient Safety from 2012-2017. He holds Visiting Professor appointments in Patient Safety at Imperial College London and the University of the West of England and is currently the Senior Advisor on Patient Safety Policy and Leadership at the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College. He is an Associate Non-Executive Director at NHS Resolution. He qualified in Medicine at The Middlesex Hospital Medical School and has held clinical, research and teaching appointments in cardiovascular anaesthesia and critical care in London, Bristol and Yale Universities. He started his 25 year medical management and leadership career as Executive Medical Director at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital in 1993 and held successive Executive Medical Director positions for Strategic Authorities between 2002-2012 culminating as the Medical Director of the NHS across the South of England supporting a population of 16M. He has led performance and clinical governance reviews in the UK and overseas. He was the UK Department of Health National Clinical Director for Venous Thrombo-Embolism, an appointed Expert by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare and on the core team for the Patient Safety Campaign for England. He led the National Patient Safety Programme for England developing the 15 Patient Safety Collaboratives across England and the Q Fellowship to build a community of 5000 quality improvers in partnership with The Health Foundation. He continues to support international development of patient safety systems with the World Health Organisation. He convened the Berwick Advisory Board in 2013 to advise on creating conditions to improve the safety of patients in England and in 2015 he was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Health to Chair the Expert Advisory Group to advise on the establishment of the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch. He led the establishment of Ministerial Inter-Governmental Summits on Patient Safety which have now been held in the UK (2016) and Germany (2017), and to be held in Japan in 2018. He holds an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the West of England and in 2017 he was awarded the highest accolade of the Royal College of Physicians of London for services to Patient Safety, their Honorary Fellowship. He is Chair of the Management Board of NICE National Clinical Guideline Centre and sits on national and international research, policy and patient safety Advisory Boards.

Omar Ishrak, PhD

Leadership

Omar Ishrak, PhD

Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Medtronic

Omar Ishrak has served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Medtronic since June 2011. Medtronic is the world’s leading medical technology company, with $30 billion in annual revenue, and operations reaching more than 150 countries worldwide. Medtronic offers technologies and solutions to treat a wide range of medical conditions, including cardiac and vascular diseases, respiratory, neurological and spinal conditions, diabetes, and more. The Medtronic Mission is to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life for millions of people around the world.

Since joining Medtronic, Omar has focused the company on three core strategies of Therapy Innovation, Economic Value and Globalization. These three strategies form the basis for Medtronic’s efforts to partner with its customers to drive high quality patient outcomes, expand patient access to healthcare, and lower costs in healthcare systems around the world. In 2014, Omar engineered the acquisition of Covidien, a $10 billion global manufacturer of surgical products and supplies. The acquisition of Covidien was the largest medical technology acquisition in the history of the industry.

Omar joined Medtronic from General Electric Company, where he spent 16 years, most recently as President and CEO of GE Healthcare Systems, a $12 billion division of GE Healthcare, with a broad portfolio of diagnostic, imaging, patient monitoring and life support systems. Omar also served as an Officer and a Senior Vice President of GE. Earlier in his career, Omar amassed 13 years of technology development and business management experience, holding leadership positions at Diasonics/Vingmed, and various product development and engineering positions at Philips Ultrasound.

He grew up in Bangladesh, and earned a Bachelor of Science degree and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of London, King’s College. He is also a Fellow of King’s College.

Omar is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Health and Healthcare Community, which includes global leaders focused on shaping the future of health and healthcare. Key areas of focus for this community include promoting healthy behaviors, better management of future pandemics/epidemics, increasing global access to care, and increasing value in healthcare systems to advance healthcare delivery and improve patient outcomes.

Omar sits on the Board of Directors of Intel, a global technology company with more than $59 billion in annual revenue. Omar is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Asia Society, the leading educational organization dedicated to promoting mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among peoples, leaders and institutions of Asia and the United States in a global context. He is also a member of the Minnesota Public Radio Board of Trustees.

David B. Mayer, MD

Leadership

David B. Mayer, MD

David Mayer, MD is executive director of the MedStar Institute for Quality & Safety (MIQS). In this role, Dr. Mayer leads specific quality and safety programs in support of discovery, learning, and the application of innovative methods to operational clinical challenges.

Prior to his appointment as executive director, MIQS Dr. Mayer served for over six years as vice president, quality and safety for MedStar Health, overseeing the infrastructure for clinical quality and its operational efficiency for MedStar and each of its entities. Dr. Mayer also designs and directs systemwide activity for patient safety and risk reduction programs.

Dr. Mayer joined MedStar from the University of Illinois Medical Center in Chicago, Ill. Over the course of 10 years, he held numerous roles including co-executive director of the UIC Institute for Patient Safety Excellence, director of UIC Masters of Science Patient Safety Leadership Program, associate dean for Education, and associate chief medical officer for Quality and Safety Graduate Medical Education. Concurrent with his other roles, he served as vice chair for Quality and Safety for the Department of Anesthesiology, where he was an associate professor of Anesthesiology and director of Cardiac Anesthesiology. Dr. Mayer also founded and has led the Annual Telluride International Patient Safety Roundtable and Patient Safety Medical Student Summer Camp for the last thirteen years.

In addition, he has significant experience in the private sector as director of Medical Affairs of the Hospital Products Division of Abbott Laboratories and was president and founder of Esurg Corporation.

Dr. Mayer attended the University of Illinois at Chicago for both his undergraduate and medical degrees. He completed his internship and residency at Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, followed by a fellowship in cardiac anesthesia. Additionally, he co-produced the patient safety educational film series titled “The Faces of Medical Error…From Tears to Transparency,” which won numerous awards including the prestigious Aegis Film Society Top Short Documentary Award.

Most recently, Dr. Mayer was listed on the Becker’s Hospital Review 2017 and 2018 lists of Top 50 people leading patient safety. He was one of four medical professionals presented with the 2017 Humanitarian Award from the Patient Safety Movement Foundation for his lifesaving achievements in patient safety. He was selected by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare (ISQua) as an International Quality and Safety Expert, has been presented with the 2013 Founders’ Award from the American College of Medical Quality, the University of Illinois/American Association of Medical Colleges Humanism in Medicine Award for his commitment to teaching, service and patient advocacy, and was recognized by the Institute of Medicine in Chicago in 2010 with the Sprague Patient Safety Award.

He regularly presents and writes on topics related to quality and patient safety, and has received grant funding from the United States Department of Education, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.

Dr. Jannicke Mellin-Olsen, MD, DPH

Leadership

Dr. Jannicke Mellin-Olsen, MD, DPH

President, World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists

Dr Mellin-Olsen is cand. med. from the University of Trondheim, Norway, from 1982. In 1987, she was the first Norwegian female physician to complete her (voluntary) military services, which she did by serving for the UNIFIL Forces in South Lebanon. She got involved in patient safety initiatives during her residence training in Trondheim University Hospital where she got her specialty in 1992. She has worked for the Red Cross in Pakistan and Serbia. She was the medical director for Europe, Middle East and Africa for MedAire, Inc, based in Tampe, AZ, for ten years, dealing with remote medical advice, including for aviation and maritime. Since 2002, she has held a full time clinical post in Baerum Hospital, Oslo, Norway.

Both in her home country and internationally, Jannicke is known for her dedication to organizational work. She has been active in the Veterans’ organization and in national and international medical organisations. During her term in the European Board of Anaesthesiology, she chaired the Patient Safety and Quality Committee before becoming president. During her presidency, she was the driving force for the Helsinki Declaration on Patient Safety in Anaesthesiology, which was launched in 2010. Since then, this Declaration has been signed and supported in all regions of the world and has become the industry standard. She is currently the secretary of the European Society of Anaesthesiology and the president elect of the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists. In her home country, she is known as a promoter of a non-punitive approach to medical errors, according to the model of the NTSBs. She is particularly committed to human factors, communication and involvement of patients, relatives and clinical staff as experts to improve patient safety.

Jannicke’s publication list mainly contains articles and book chapters related to patient safety, edication and manpower. She is a well-known speaker at anaesthesiology meetings globally and holds several honorary positions.

Charlie Miceli, CPM

Leadership

Charlie Miceli, CPM

Miceli has set the vision and mission for the University of Vermont Medical Center Supply Chain operation, ranked #1 and #2 by the University Health System Consortium/Vizient in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. The effectiveness of the supply chain has supported the clinical mission and operations of the University of Vermont Medical Center, OneCare Vermont, and the University of Vermont Health Network

Miceli has also served as the Vice President of Information Systems for the University of Vermont Medical Center as well as the CIO for the OneCare Vermont Accountable Care Organization

Key accomplishments include sponsoring the successful integration of biomedical devices with the EPIC EHR, as well as championing interoperability of key clinical applications with EPIC (McKesson PACS).

Prior to joining Fletcher Allen/University of Vermont Medical Center in 2008, Miceli held leadership positions in supply chain, biomedical engineering, and support services at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Loyola University Medical Center, The University of Chicago Hospital and Health Systems, and Partners Healthcare System in Boston. He has also served as an expert consultant in change management/turn around, cost management, and information systems.

An avid guitarist, Miceli and colleague McKenna Lee founded the musical group McKenna Lee and the Microfixers in 2010. Over the past 7 years the group has helped raise over $20k for charitable causes. He has two adult children with wife Mari, an RN and fellow patient safety advocate who designed and developed the PatientAider app that the Miceli’s donated to the Patient Safety Movement Foundation.

Tamra Minnier, MSN, RN, FACHE

Leadership

Tamra Minnier, MSN, RN, FACHE

Tami Minnier is the Chief Quality Officer for UPMC, an integrated delivery and financing system in Pittsburgh, PA. Quality, Safety and the Patient Experience is driven by the Wolff Center at UPMC. She is the Executive Director for the Beckwith Institute, a $15 million dollar foundation supporting innovation in care delivery and shared decision making.

Ms. Minnier has a passion for clinical care improvement. She has her BSN and MSN from the University of Pittsburgh; she is a fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. Ms. Minnier has studied the Toyota Production System and Lean Manufacturing. She is a graduate of the Advanced Training Program at Intermountain Health Care and has been on faculty at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. She is the Vice-Chair of the Board of Joint Commission International/ Joint Commission Resources. She also serves as a board member of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation. A nationally known speaker, Ms. Minnier has been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Newsweek, The Journal of Nursing Administration, Modern Health Care, Healthcare Leaders, Reflections by Sigma Theta Tau, and many other journals. She has been noted by Becker’s as one of the 50 top experts leading the field of patient safety and top 130 women health system leaders to know in the USA in 2015. However, her proudest accomplishment is her son, Seth.

Jim Messina

Leadership

Jim Messina

Chief Executive Officer, The Messina Group

Jim Messina is arguably one of the world’s most successful political advisors. The
mastermind behind President Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign, Jim Messina seized the
reins on what Bloomberg Businessweek dubbed “the highest-wattage crash course in
executive management ever undertaken”—and succeeded, earning the President another
term in the White House. With the guidance of technology’s foremost leaders, Jim
abandoned every step of a traditional presidential campaign and merged technology and
politics in a way that was both unpredictable and unprecedented.

Jim’s strategies established the modern presidential campaign—Google’s Executive
Chairman Eric Schmidt called it “the best-run campaign ever.” The American Association of Political Consultants later crowned him the Campaign Strategist of the Year (2013).

Since then he has gone on to advise Presidents and Prime Ministers on five continents
including: UK’s Theresa May and David Cameron, Mexico’s Enrique Peña Nieto, Argentina’s Mauricio Macri, Italy’s Matteo Renzi and in 2016 helped Spain’s President Mariano Rajoy win a surprising re-election margin.

In 2013, Messina launched The Messina Group. In this role, Messina provides strategic
consulting to businesses around the world. The firm has been involved in winning public
policy campaigns on five continents. Clients include Uber, Airbnb, Google, Delta Air Lines,
Hutchison Whampoa, and over 70 others.

Previously, Jim served as Deputy Chief of Staff in President Barack Obama’s White House,
where he was integral to the passage of the historic health care bill, the economic stimulus
act credited with saving the US economy, and the landmark repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.”

Messina continues to advise and guide Democratic candidates and organizations at all
levels, as well as providing insight on news outlets such as MSNBC, CNN, Bloomberg, BBC
and others.

Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD, FCCM

Leadership

Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD, FCCM

Dr. Peter Pronovost is a world-renowned patient safety champion, critical care physician, a prolific researcher, publishing over 800 peer review publications, and a global thought leader, informing US and global health policy. His scientific work leveraging checklists to reduce catheter-related bloodstream infections has saved thousands of lives and earned him high-profile accolades, including being named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine, receiving a coveted MacArthur Foundation “genius grant” in 2008, and regularly recognized as one of the most influential executives and physician executives in healthcare. The life-saving intervention has been implemented state by state across the U.S. Today, these catheter infections that used to kill as many people as breast or prostate cancer, have been reduced by 80% compared to 1999 before the “To Err is Human” report was published.

After demonstrating the ability to eliminate one harm in most health systems, Dr. Pronovost sought to eliminate all harms in one health system, Johns Hopkins. Toward that goal, Dr. Pronovost served the Johns Hopkins Medicine Senior Vice President for Patient Safety and Quality and the founder and director of the Johns Hopkins Medicine Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality. The Institute coordinates research, training and operations for patient safety and quality across JHM, bringing together over 18 different disciplines from every school and division of the university. Dr. Pronovost served as the Senior Vice President for Clinical Strategy and the Chief Medical officer for Unitedhealth Care. Dr. Pronovost was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2011 and has received multiple honorary degrees. Dr. Pronovost is an advisor to the World Health Organizations’ World Alliance for Patient Safety and regularly addresses the U.S. Congress on patient safety issues. Dr. Pronovost regularly writes a column for the Wall Street Journal and US News and World Report. Dr. Pronovost is a founder of Doctella, a health information platform for quality of care.

Michael A.E. Ramsay, MD, FRCA

Leadership

Michael A.E. Ramsay, MD, FRCA

Chairman, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Management, Baylor University Medical Center, and President of Baylor Scott & White Research Institute

Dr. Ramsay is Chairman of the Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Management at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Texas, a position that he has held since 1989. He is also Co-Medical Director of Operating Room Services. He serves as a member of the Baylor University Medical Center Board of Trustees and is also a member of the Medical Board. He is Director of Anesthesia for the liver transplant program and has personally provided anesthesia for over 1,000 liver transplant recipients. Dr. Ramsay is Past President of the International Liver Transplantation Society. Dr. Ramsay was recently appointed as an at-large delegate to the United Network for Organ Sharing and is a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists Committee on Transplant Anesthesia. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of The Patient Safety Movement Foundation and serves as the Chair of the “Failure to Rescue: Post-operative Respiratory Depression” workgroup.

Dr. Ramsay is a Professor at Texas A & M Health Science Center and holds a clinical professorship in anesthesiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School as well as in the Department of Periodontics at Baylor College of Dentistry, Texas A & M University.

In addition, Dr. Ramsay is the developer of the Ramsay Sedation Scale, a measurement designed for interpreting the depth of sedation for patients in the critical care unit. This scale has been adopted around the world. He has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles and numerous chapters in text books. He was a member of the Sedation Analgesia Guidelines Task Force of the Society of Critical Care Medicine. This group came out with new guidelines for the management of Pain, Agitation and Delirium in Adult ICU patients in January 2013.

As President of Baylor Scott & White Research Institute (BSWRI), Dr. Ramsay leads clinically relevant research efforts for Baylor Scott & White Health (BSWH). Since joining the organization, he has developed a successful infrastructure that has increased the number of clinical trials from 250 to more than 2,000 active trials today. The mission of BRI is expressed in the following statement: “To improve the medical care and well-being of our community – nationally and internationally – through innovative, clinical research that is consistent with the mission, vision and values of Baylor Scott & White Health.” He executed a multimillion dollar collaboration agreement with La Roche pharmaceuticals that supports very early research projects and accelerates their completion. This was a pilot project and has now been replicated at many academic centers around the world.

Dr. Ramsay is currently involved in a number of clinical research projects for which he is the principal investigator. His current research includes the role of nitric oxide in ameliorating the reperfusion injury in liver transplantation. He also is a Principal Investigator of several NIH-funded clinical trials to improve the outcomes of trauma victims.

David B. Mayer, MD

Management

David B. Mayer, MD

David Mayer, MD is executive director of the MedStar Institute for Quality & Safety (MIQS). In this role, Dr. Mayer leads specific quality and safety programs in support of discovery, learning, and the application of innovative methods to operational clinical challenges.

Prior to his appointment as executive director, MIQS Dr. Mayer served for over six years as vice president, quality and safety for MedStar Health, overseeing the infrastructure for clinical quality and its operational efficiency for MedStar and each of its entities. Dr. Mayer also designs and directs systemwide activity for patient safety and risk reduction programs.

Dr. Mayer joined MedStar from the University of Illinois Medical Center in Chicago, Ill. Over the course of 10 years, he held numerous roles including co-executive director of the UIC Institute for Patient Safety Excellence, director of UIC Masters of Science Patient Safety Leadership Program, associate dean for Education, and associate chief medical officer for Quality and Safety Graduate Medical Education. Concurrent with his other roles, he served as vice chair for Quality and Safety for the Department of Anesthesiology, where he was an associate professor of Anesthesiology and director of Cardiac Anesthesiology. Dr. Mayer also founded and has led the Annual Telluride International Patient Safety Roundtable and Patient Safety Medical Student Summer Camp for the last thirteen years.

In addition, he has significant experience in the private sector as director of Medical Affairs of the Hospital Products Division of Abbott Laboratories and was president and founder of Esurg Corporation.

Dr. Mayer attended the University of Illinois at Chicago for both his undergraduate and medical degrees. He completed his internship and residency at Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, followed by a fellowship in cardiac anesthesia. Additionally, he co-produced the patient safety educational film series titled “The Faces of Medical Error…From Tears to Transparency,” which won numerous awards including the prestigious Aegis Film Society Top Short Documentary Award.

Most recently, Dr. Mayer was listed on the Becker’s Hospital Review 2017 and 2018 lists of Top 50 people leading patient safety. He was one of four medical professionals presented with the 2017 Humanitarian Award from the Patient Safety Movement Foundation for his lifesaving achievements in patient safety. He was selected by the International Society for Quality in Healthcare (ISQua) as an International Quality and Safety Expert, has been presented with the 2013 Founders’ Award from the American College of Medical Quality, the University of Illinois/American Association of Medical Colleges Humanism in Medicine Award for his commitment to teaching, service and patient advocacy, and was recognized by the Institute of Medicine in Chicago in 2010 with the Sprague Patient Safety Award.

He regularly presents and writes on topics related to quality and patient safety, and has received grant funding from the United States Department of Education, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation.

Ariana Longley, MPH

Management

Ariana Longley, MPH

Chief Operating Officer, Patient Safety Movement Foundation

Ariana has been with the Patient Safety Movement Foundation since 2015 and is currently serving as Chief Operating Officer.

In her short career prior to joining the Patient Safety Movement Foundation, Ariana graduated cum laude from Loyola Marymount University with a Bachelor of Science in Biology with a minor in Studio Arts. She worked at the University of California, Irvine’s Institute for Immunology for one year and left her post at UCI to pursue a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland in 2012, with a focus on oral immunotherapy for children with egg allergy. Ariana came back to California and spent time at the Orange County Healthcare Agency in the Health Promotion Division. She then seized the opportunity to work at Masimo Corporation, in the Fire and Emergency Medical Services sector, where she worked closely with marketing and sales to develop a Grant Assistance Program, helping Fire and EMS Departments procure devices to help them screen for carbon monoxide poisoning, among department staff and the public. Ariana volunteered at the Patient Safety Movement Foundation’s 2015 Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit and knew that she wanted to step into a leadership role to support the Foundation’s audacious mission.

Since joining the Patient Safety Movement, Ariana developed the Committed Partners opportunity for professional societies, associations, and other aligned healthcare-related organizations to work with the Movement and has helped grow the number of committed organizations to over 4,500 worldwide, spanning 49 countries.

Michel Bennett

Management

Michel Bennett

Clinical Director

Michel Bennett is a graduate from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Science in Business with a minor in Biology. After graduation, Michel was able to combine her love of science with her passion for business in the pharmaceutical industry. She has worked for companies such as: Phizer, Merck, and Astra-Zeneca. In the hospital space, Michel specialized in the cardiovascular, diabetic and infectious disease states. She has collaboratively worked with teaching physicians, key opinion leaders, hospital planners and other stakeholders to identify opportunities to improve patient care and outcomes through drug intervention, process management and patient relations.

Michel has leveraged her healthcare experience and knowledge by volunteering with the Beach Cities Health District (BCHD), one of the largest preventative health agencies in the nation. Michel was instrumental in working with elementary schools, PTA, and community partners to develop a “Running Club” in her neighborhood. The popularity of the program has spread in other states such as AZ, WA, WY, MI and NY. This program is completely led by volunteers and has had a direct impact on the lives of families living in her community.

Michel comes to the Patient Safety Movement Foundation with a passion for teaching, collaborating with others, and improving overall healthcare.

Sarah Miller, MS

Management

Sarah Miller, MS

Partnerships Manager

Sarah has been with the Patient Safety Movement Foundation since 2017 and is currently serving as Partnerships Manager. Prior to joining the Foundation, Sarah graduated from Chapman University in Orange, CA, with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies. Following graduation, she decided to further her education and received a Master of Science in Health and Strategic Communication from Chapman University with a focus on helping family caregivers reduce their psychological distress levels. After realizing her passion for the health care industry, Sarah took an opportunity to work as a Physician Recruiter so that she could help physicians of all specialties and subspecialties find their niche in the health care realm.

Sarah was told about the Foundation’s mission through a former intern and was eager to get involved in helping the Patient Safety Movement achieve ZERO preventable patient deaths.

Sarah is excited to be a part of such a collaborative and hard-working team.

Clairre Abeyratne, MSc

Management

Clairre Abeyratne, MSc

Program and Event Coordinator

Clairre has been with the Patient Safety Movement Foundation since 2018 and is currently serving as the Program & Event Coordinator.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Clairre earned a Master’s degree in International Management from The University of Exeter’s Business school in England. Her final degree assignment comprised of a business consulting project coordinating a stakeholder mapping and collaboration plan with interest in future city development and branding for a local organization affiliated with the University. She held a Student Ambassador position during her time on campus and continues to support the British service that links American students with UK universities to further their education.

Before studying abroad, Clairre graduated from Chapman University with a Bachelor of Arts in Strategic & Corporate Communication and a minor in Psychology. During her final semester she undertook research assignments involving Water Conservation and Artificial Intelligence topics. Clairre also had the opportunity to intern part-time in the Human Resources department at Masimo and continued full-time during the summer before leaving for the UK. She launched the 2016 summer intern program organizing lunch & learns, creating career development presentations, and maintained intern engagement across engineering, R&D, product design, marketing, and clinical departments. She enjoyed the “social” aspects of the role revolving around recruiting and has developed a passion for working in healthcare especially with an international component. She thrives in a team environment and is thrilled to build a career around innovative business practice that holds purpose in the lives of others.

Olivia Lounsbury

Management

Olivia Lounsbury

Olivia is currently a sophomore at Chapman University in Southern California and is pursuing a double major in Health Science and a self designed major in Law and Behavioral Studies.

Although in the nascent stages of her schooling, Olivia is active in research through Crean College on campus involving the stimulation of mitochondrion to aid in diabetes treatment. After training for and testing into the COPE Health Scholar program at St. Joseph’s hospital in Orange, CA, in addition to her own personal experience with AML Leukemia, Olivia realized the incredible platform she had been given through these experiences. Through observation in the COPE program, she developed a passion for working side-by-side with patients of all backgrounds and ages. She was able to hear the stories of the patients and the challenges of the healthcare providers and integrate both in working towards minimizing the number of preventable deaths in hospitals.

Upon hearing about the mission for ZERO preventable deaths by 2020, Olivia is thrilled to use all of her prior experiences in healthcare with the team at the Patient Safety Movement Foundation.

Celyne Demonteverde

Management

Celyne Demonteverde

Celyne is currently a senior and rising graduate at the University of California, Irvine with a major in Public Health and a double minor in Management and Medical Anthropology.

Before joining the Patient Safety Movement Foundation team, Celyne was studying business administration and interning at a sustainability management and consulting firm in South Korea. Prior to studying abroad, she interned for the healthcare consulting company CIVIC Communications to onboard 19 students to execute the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) Health Asset Mapping Project. With her passion for health care, science and technology, she spearheaded the technology team to translate the health asset database and map to an online, user-friendly, cost-effective platform. Through her upbringing in a care home for the elderly and past experience consulting for non-profit organizations, her passion for serving others and improving their quality of care was fostered.

At the Patient Movement Safety Movement Foundation, Celyne is looking forward to working with the engaging, passionate team to better the health of others.

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